Local Innovations: Green Frog Bus, Enova Energy, Flow Hive.

Unlike mainstream media that concentrate on the negative, I like to tell everyone about good local stories. Here are some interesting titbits happening in the bay. We live in a place that celebrates innovation, diversity and difference.

1.The Green Frog is a new shuttle bus that can help people get around.

2. Enova Energy is now licenced to provide us with cheaper sustainable power.

3. The Flow Hise is a local invention that revolutionises the harvesting of honey.

Innovation 1. The Green Frog Bus

About eight years ago I went to a meeting to support a group of people wanting to start a circular shuttle bus. Well, yes, it does take a long time to get anything done in this shire, but it has now arrived.

This month will be the start of the Green Frog – hop on, hop off – shuttle bus. The bus will do four circuits of the shire per day and take about two hours each cycle. It will go from Suffolk Park, through Byron Bay and Brunswick Heads, then Mullumbimby, Crystal Castle, Bangalow and back to Suffolk Park. It will costs $40 per trip with family discounts and 2 day passes. The website is not functioning yet but look out or the big yellow bus covered in green frogs.

Innovation 2. Enova Energy

Readers of last month’s newsletter may remember my piece about community power generator COREM and energy provider Enova. These not-for-profit organisations have the potential to work together to introduce a new way for us to produce, distribute and use power. Please go on to the Enova energy website, download the proposal and see if you want to participate by buying a share or becoming a customer.

Innovation 3. Flow Hive

Local hippy kid makes good! For those who missed the Australian Story on ABC Monday 26th of October and do not want to visit it on Iview, local film maker and ABC regular, Vanessa Goreman gave us a great story. Cedar Anderson grew up on a typical hippie commune (Bodhi Farm I think). Always being a tinkerer, he and his father invented a new, non-invasive way of harvesting honey from the bee hive. They wanted to crowd source the start-up and first orders. The $60,000 online request was quickly swamped and the $12m in orders has now transformed the hippie kid into an international business tycoon. Be careful what you ask for!